TABLE 3 Description and Comparison of Data-Collection Methodologies,,,,,
,In-person,Telephone,Mail,Internet,
Description,Interviewer travels to respondent’s home or office and administers questions in face-to-face interview,Interviewer contacts respondent and administers questions over the telephone,"Questionnaire mailed to respondent and returned by mail, or data are retrieved by telephone",Respondent completes survey on web ,
Coverage,Most complete,Omits nontelephone households,Similar to in-person depending on how the addresses were obtained,Only households with internet connection or access to internet,
Response rate,Highest of all modes,Intermediate,Among the lowest,Among the lowest,
Data quality,Highest of all modes,Intermediate,Lowest of all modes,Intermediate; mixed results,
Cost,Most expensive (this often leads to geographically clustered sample cases and a reduction in the effective sample size),Intermediate,Among least expensive,Among least expensive; has a high startup cost compared with data-collection cost,